Will Levis will not play for Kentucky football against South Carolina due to injury
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Game day: South Carolina 24, No. 13 Kentucky 14
Click below for more of the Herald-Leader’s and Kentucky.com’s coverage of Saturday night’s Kentucky-South Carolina football game at Kroger Field in Lexington.
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If Kentucky football is to bounce back from its first loss of the season against South Carolina, it will have to do so without star quarterback Will Levis.
Levis suffered an foot/ankle injury and dislocated a finger on his non-throwing hand in the loss at Ole Miss but was able to play through both ailments in the second half. The finger did not require surgery to fix, but the other injury has reportedly caused Levis to miss practice time this week. ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported on “College GameDay” earlier Saturday Levis was dealing with turf toe.
Levis was spotted wearing a walking boot on his left foot Thursday. After a day of reports about the possibility that his star quarterback would be unavailable against South Carolina, UK Coach Mark Stoops had no update on Levis’ status after Thursday’s practice.
It became quickly apparent Saturday evening Levis would not play when he participated in the pregame Cat Walk while still wearing a walking boot on his left foot. As Kentucky players began to warm up on the field, Levis watched in a sweatsuit, still wearing the boot.
Widely projected as a first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, Levis ranks 24th nationally in passing yards per game (281) through five games. He has thrown 12 touchdowns and four interceptions.
Protecting Levis has been a problem for Kentucky for much of the season. The Wildcats rank 127th of 131 teams in sacks allowed (19). Levis has been sacked at least three times in each game this season.
With Levis out, redshirt freshman quarterback Kaiya Sheron is expected to start for the Wildcats. The former Somerset High School star made his UK debut on the final drive of the week-three win over Youngstown State but has yet to attempt a pass in a college game.
Sheron did lead Somerset to the 2019 Kentucky 2A state championship in Kroger Field, throwing the game-winning touchdown pass on an untimed down in the final play of the game. A consensus three-star recruit who picked UK over Marshall in high school, Sheron completed 4 of 9 passes for 58 yards in the 2021 spring game.
Iowa transfer Deuce Hogan and freshman Destin Wade are the other scholarship quarterbacks on the roster. Hogan opened the season as the No. 2 quarterback on the depth chart but has since been passed by Sheron in practice.
“I feel good,” Stoops said Thursday when asked about his backup quarterbacks. “You never know until you get into a game, until they’re pressed into that situation. I think you could say that about a lot of players, but it’s very real with quarterbacks, with all they have to do. You may see somebody that looks just absolutely gorgeous in 7-on-7 and throwing on air and things, then when all the moving pieces happen I think that’s when you get a true indicator of what you have at quarterback.”
Kentucky will also be without normal starting middle linebacker Jacquez Jones (foot) and normal starting right tackle Jeremy Flax (leg) due to injuries. Outside linebacker J.J. Weaver, who missed the last two games with an elbow injury, was back on the field for pregame warmups though.
This story was originally published October 8, 2022 at 6:09 PM.
